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SOCIAL MEDIA

1.03.2017

Grace

2016 was a challenging year. I went through most of it feeling like I never really had my feet planted in the ground. Despite the fact that I feel like I floated through most of last year, towards the end, I think I started to figure some of it out. I'm in a much better place going into 2017. So much so, that I'm excited for what lies ahead - even the big changes that I'm usually not a fan of!

When it comes to New Year's resolutions... I'm so over them. It's not because I'm bad at them (which I am), but because they feel too confining. I enter each new year with a hard and fast list of things I need to accomplish, when really, my progress through each year feels more fluid. Of course, I still have goals I want to accomplish in different areas, fitness being a main one, but I wanted to approach 2017 a little differently because, well, it's going to be a different year.

Throughout October, November, and December, as I really started to find my way through the haze that was the first half of 2016, I started to realize how important it is to not just have an "organized" life, but to have a life that you enjoy. My focus has been on perfection and organization for as long as I can remember. I'm constantly thinking, "If my life can look like X, Y, and Z, then it'll be perfect and I'll be happy." We all know that isn't how it works. I believe in the power of organization and order, but I've also started believing more in enjoying the life you have in front of you rather than trying to make it fit into bins and boxes and binders. You have to have grace with yourself and with those around you.

And that's when it hit me. My focus in 2017 would be GRACE. It would be enjoying life as it comes, savoring moments, loving my people, putting in good and honest work, and perhaps most importantly, forgiving myself when I can't do it all.

Of course, my vision for 2017 also involves a few major goals I've set for myself:

1. Focus on what matters

2. Care better for my mind and body

3. Save and simplify more, spend and acquire less

I have action steps to go along with each of those three goals that make them a bit more measurable, but having all-encompassing statements feels more fluid that those strict resolutions I talked about earlier. I'm excited and (somewhat) prepared for a grace-filled, transitional year!